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This weekend, I was totally blindsided by one of those awful stomach viruses where you can't do anything but lie perfectly still and just hope hope hope you feel better. Anyway, on Saturday, as I was feeling awful (which was compounded by the fact that my landlord kept ringing my bell to show my apartment, since I'm moving in a few weeks) I was watching a lot of episodes of Tim Gunn's Guide to Style.

And I realized: in addition to my online profile getting a makeover, it's time for me to makeover (ugh, I'm not really a fan of that word!) my wardrobe. You know that saying, dress for the job you want, not the job you have? I think that also comes into play when it comes to dating. Do I necessarily want to date a guy who considers ripped jeans and faded Greatful Dead t-shirts first date material? Quite honestly, I don't, which means that maybe I shouldn't wear my black lace skirt from the Salvation Army that I cut to land mid-thigh, with my Lollapalooza '93 t-shirt under a ripped cardigan. (I'm only sort of kidding).

I used to call my style "bohemian wood nymph." Right now, we're going to consider "bohemian wood nymph" on par with "urban bunny" in terms of labels I don't want to use to define myself anymore. I used to dress like I didn't care because I didn't want to look like a girl who cared. I thought dressing up for a date meant that I wasn't being authentic. I wanted to be seen as this whimsical (and, yes, flighty) writer-girl-about-town . . . sort of like Holly Golightly Goes to Goodwill!

But, I realized, with full (and probably feverish) clarity—and with the help of Tim Gunn—that that look isn't working for me anymore. Namely, because that's not who I am. While I am totally fun (I hope!) and whimsical, I'm also incredibly disciplined, a hard worker, and someone who's anything BUT flighty in my goals for my life.

So, with that, on Sunday, I mustered a lot of energy and cleaned out my closet, ending up with 3+ trash bags to haul to the Salvation Army (including that black lace skirt, truly proving the adage what goes around comes around). While I'm not giving up my love of short(er) skirts and graphic t-shirts, it does mean that, at least for first dates, I want to look a little more classic, a little more traditional, a little less . . . disheveled. Because, ultimately, a first date, as cynical as it sounds, is like a warped version of a job interview—something that I've always taken extremely seriously

What about you? Do you/did you get dressed up before dates? And is there such a thing as trying too hard?